Case 36 – Flying

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"They're coming over here again?"

Agasa put down his phone and wheeled his desk chair back over to his computer. "Now, now, don't be like that, Ai-kun. You can't blame them. They've been spending a lot of time at The Blue Parrot and Kaito-kun's mother's house too. Being alone is probably hard on them right now with Kaito-kun's injuries and Gin still at large."

"Can't blame them, huh?" she muttered and Agasa let out a sigh.

"Weren't you planning to work in the lab tonight anyway?" he asked. "They won't bother you–"

"I suddenly don't feel like working in the lab anymore," she said in a haughty tone and Agasa shook his head a little with a quiet smile when she turned away.

She cares too much… he thought. Maybe one of these days she'll admit it.

.

Late that night, Haibara glanced up from the article she was reading on her phone. The lights were out, a movie playing quietly on the TV under the sound of Agasa's snoring, and Shinichi and Kaito were sitting on the couch across from her. Both of them had finally fallen asleep propped against each other, and she shut off her phone, hopping down off of the opposite couch to retrieve a spare blanket. As she climbed up beside them and covered them with it, Shinichi opened one eye and gave her a cheeky grin.

"I wouldn't expect you to do something so motherly," he whispered.

Haibara froze for a moment, her face going a little pink, but then her expression flattened again and she flicked a corner of the blanket at Shinichi's face with a quiet "Hmph." She hopped down again and returned to the other couch.

"You don't have to hide it, you know," Shinichi laughed softly, tugging the blanket down and adjusting it a little around Kaito's cast. "It's okay to care about your friends."

"Who asked you?" Haibara whispered back, but there was no bite to it, only resignation. She glanced at Kaito in the light from the TV and Shinichi breathed out a laugh.

"It's okay. He's really asleep." He reached over to brush his fingers through Kaito's bangs with a small smile. "He's been pretty worn out lately."

"…It might just be from his injuries," Haibara said. "Or the stress is finally getting to him. People can only pretend for so long."

"Yeah. I think you're right." He met her eyes, unyielding, and she had to look away. "Why can't you admit you're worried about him? He still thinks you're holding some kind of grudge–"

"Don't be an idiot," Haibara sighed. "He knows damn well how I feel. He can tell. He just lies to you – because he knows the value of secrets, and something like that isn't his to tell. Isn't that right, you stupid thief."

Shinichi looked down at Kaito again and saw the slight quirk to his lips. "Well… I can't say I knew you thought quite that highly of me," he murmured without opening his eyes. "But you're not really wrong either."

"Tch, you'd think I'd be able to tell when you're faking by now," Shinichi complained, sinking down a little farther into the cushions and slipping his arm around Kaito's waist under the blanket.

"Heh, not a chance, Tantei-kun."

"Okay, you two idiots need to actually get some sleep," Haibara decided, getting up to turn off the TV. "Take my bed. I've got work to do." Before they could argue, she headed down to the basement and closed the door behind her.

"Geez, that woman," Shinichi muttered. "Well, what do you think?"

"I think she'd probably be pissed if we left at this point," Kaito answered.

"Yeah, I think you're right. Come on." He reached over to grab the crutch leaning against the side of the couch and helped Kaito to his feet, supporting him to keep his weight off of his injured leg until he had the crutch under his good arm to lean on. They made their way over to Haibara's bed in the dark and laid down pressed close against each other.

"Hey, Shinichi," Kaito murmured. "What are we gonna do after I get better? She'll start to get suspicious about us coming over here eventually."

"I wouldn't worry," Shinichi whispered back. "I think she'll feel okay again soon. Especially if you're planning what I think you are."

Kaito breathed out a little laugh. "You noticed that, huh?"

"What, you scoping the place out whenever she wasn't looking? Yeah, I noticed. You thinking security system?"

"Yeah," Kaito answered. "Something lower maintenance than mine. I've already got some ideas."

"Mm. Sounds good," Shinichi murmured.

"Heh. Good night, Shinichi," Kaito said, and he tugged him a little closer under their blanket. Shinichi took the hint and snaked an arm over Kaito's torso, resting his head against Kaito's shoulder.

"Good night, Kaito."

.

"Christmas in Paris?" Yukiko gasped over the phone. "Oh, Shin-chan, how romantic! I'm jealous!"

Shinichi let out an aggravated sigh. "No, Kaa-san. We're going to Lyon, and we'll be back before Christmas."

"You're no fun at all, Shinichi," she pouted back. "You get that from your father. Don't you think Kai-chan would appreciate a romantic Christmas in Paris?"

"I'm sure he would," Shinichi muttered. Then, more clearly, he said, "But Kaito and I have both missed a lot of school and work lately." And thieving, he silently added. "So I'm going for the conference and Kaito's coming with me and that's it."

"And?" Yukiko prompted impatiently. "You keep mentioning this 'conference' but you haven't said a word about what it's for."

"Leave him alone, Yukiko," Shinichi heard in the background of the call. "He's not supposed to talk about it."

How the hell does Tou-san always know about these things? Shinichi wondered. "Anyway," he said. "We'll be boarding soon, so I should get going. Talk to you later." He hung up just as Kaito was finally emerging from the depths of his bag.

"Found it! Here," he said, tossing something to Shinichi. He caught it one-handed and held it up in front of his eyes. It was a little triangular charm marked with a familiar four-leaf clover.

"I made one for you," Kaito said with a mischievous grin. "Figured you could use the luck."

"Heh, you sound like Hattori," Shinichi said, but he tucked the charm into his pocket. "What, you don't wanna fly an airplane with me again?" he asked with a mock tone of insult.

"I think I'll take a rain check," Kaito answered with a smirk.

.

The headquarters of Interpol was a huge mirrored building in Lyon, France. As Shinichi stared up at it, he thought that it could have been intimidating, but he'd been to Osaka's police headquarters and it somehow didn't feel that different. Even knowing that inside was a gathering of police from around the world that he would be speaking to – in English for the most part no less – it still didn't bother him. What he couldn't quite make peace with was what he would be talking about. Telling Megure about his involvement with the Black Organization was one thing, but telling a large assembly of strangers was another thing entirely. He let out a sigh and reached for the doors.

He was definitely early. Kaito had been too restless that morning to sit in the hotel room, and had gone out to "explore the city," though from the look Kaito had given him before he left, Shinichi got the feeling that wasn't all that his plans included. But sitting alone in the hotel had made Shinichi restless as well, so he'd ended up at ICPO, clipping on his visitor's badge and wandering aimlessly to kill time before he had to meet up with Megure, who had also flown out to represent the Tokyo MPD.

Shinichi's mind was occupied enough with the impending conference that he didn't really register the fact that he hadn't passed any people in some time. Then, just as he absently turned another corner, he heard the sound of a dove cooing from somewhere down the hallway. He froze for a moment then started slowly toward the sound.

"Hello?" he said in what he hoped was not too badly accented French, poking his head through an open doorway at the end of the hall. He was mostly unsurprised when Kaito suddenly pulled him into the room and replied in a perfect-French purr, "Hello, little detective~"

"What are you doing here?" Shinichi sighed, instantly switching back to Japanese.

"I," Kaito said with emphasis. "Am very responsibly looping a feed of this empty room on that security camera over there so that I can visit my boyfriend who won't admit that he's freaking out right now."

"I am not freaking out," Shinichi replied firmly. "And how the hell did you get that dove past airport security? Twice."

The dove in question was patiently preening its feathers on the back of a chair tucked under a small table in what Shinichi was only just registering as some kind of break room or kitchen area.

"That's Shiranosuke, right?"

"Yeah. He's got the most even temperament so I chose him to come along."

"And what are you planning on doing that you need one of your doves?" Shinichi asked.

"Well, I already combed the building for bombs and listening devices last night," he said with a shrug. "But I'm planning to keep watch over this conference of yours anyway. Just in case."

"Kaito…" Shinichi hesitated then reached out and tugged gently on the hem of Kaito's sweater, bringing him a little closer so he could brush his lips against the corner of Kaito's. "Thank you." When he pulled back he added, incredulous, "Geez, aren't you exhausted?"

"We're in France," Kaito replied, giving him a bright-eyed smile. "There's no time to be exhausted! I don't know how you can sit still!"

"Heh, I promise I'll be more excited after the conference is over."

"Shinichi, relax. It's gonna be fine."

"Yeah, I know," he replied.

"You know, huh?" Kaito raised an eyebrow over a knowing smirk. "Know what I think?" He grabbed onto Shinichi's hips and pushed him a few steps backward, moving with him until Shinichi ran into the counter that spanned one wall.

"Kaito–"

"I think you're overthinking it." He leaned in, his lips just brushing against Shinichi's as he murmured, "I think you need a distraction."

Neither moved for a moment, Kaito waiting for Shinichi's verdict and Shinichi weighing his sense of propriety against his trust in Kaito (more specifically, his trust in Kaito's unparalleled ability to get away with less than proper things without anyone ever knowing). He found he wasn't surprised when his trust in Kaito won out. Really, it was just simple fact that that trust won out over a lot of Shinichi's better senses.

Shinichi pushed forward just a little and caught Kaito's lips with his own, carefully suppressing an inappropriate sound of approval when Kaito pushed back, pinning him in place with his body so his hands could move more freely. Shinichi, however, could only move his hands from where they were bracing him against the counter at the risk of Kaito bending him over backwards completely and probably knocking his head into the cabinets on the wall behind him while he was at it. So instead Kaito gripped his hips hard and boosted him upward, seating him on the countertop and standing between his spread legs. Immediately he moved in for another kiss and grinned into it as Shinichi's fingers tangled into Kaito's hair.

"So," Kaito breathed out against Shinichi's cheek when they finally broke apart. "Are you sufficiently distracted now?"

"Huh? Distracted from what?" Shinichi asked a little distantly and Kaito laughed.

"I'll take that as a yes." He cast a glance at his watch. "Hey, aren't you meeting Megure-keibu soon?"

"What?" He grabbed Kaito's wrist and turned it around. "Kaito!" Shinichi pushed the tittering magician back and jumped down from the counter, stumbling a little in his haste as he made for the door.

"Hang on just a second," Kaito said, snagging him by the back of his blazer before he could reach it. He pulled Shinichi back and turned him around, quick fingers already re-tucking his shirt and straightening the lopsided tie and smoothing his hair back into the familiar almost-well-groomed style he'd always worn. "There," he said. He kissed him again, chaste but lingering, then spun him where he stood to give him a little shove toward the door. "Knock 'em dead, Tantei-kun!"

"Still not funny, Kaito," Shinichi warned, smiling back at him over his shoulder before he took off through the door at a run.

.

The conference lasted all day and well into the night, and Kaitou KID sat on the roof of the building, listening carefully to all of the discussions through the device Shinichi had allowed to be planted on him. When it finally concluded without incident, Kaito changed back into street clothes and met Shinichi at the doors.

"Hotel first," Kaito said. "Then dinner."

Shinichi agreed gratefully. He wanted to discuss everything with Kaito as soon as possible, and that wasn't something they could do in a public place.

.

"A task force," Kaito breathed out in wonder, throwing himself onto the hotel bed. "You have a task force!"

"I'm on a task force," Shinichi corrected. "Conditionally."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm still gonna absolutely terrorize you and whoever Megure-keibu assigns to your team."

"It's not a KID task force!" Shinichi tried, but he knew it was hopeless. He tugged off his tie and tossed it and his blazer onto a nearby chair, starting on the buttons of his shirt. "Don't I get any credit for the official temporary reprieve and police cooperation with you?"

"That just sucks the fun out of it," Kaito sighed, folding his hands behind his head.

"You want to help, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do. And I know mutual cooperation is important. But it's still less fun."

"Weren't you just saying you'd be terrorizing the Organization task force? Quit complaining."

Kaito grinned. "You're right. No more complaining. We're in France." He jumped up from the bed again and latched onto Shinichi from behind before he could actually manage to put on the sweater in his hands. "The Fête des Lumières starts tomorrow night," Kaito murmured against his neck. "It'd be a shame to miss it."

Kaito's hands were wandering now, taking the sweater away from Shinichi and tossing it onto the bed, then moving slow and appreciative over Shinichi's bare chest and stomach. Shinichi pushed them away and turned in the circle of Kaito's arms to face him.

"Then that's what we'll do tomorrow night," he agreed. "And tonight…" He trailed off with obvious purpose in both his tone and his gaze, slipping his arms around Kaito.

"Tonight?" Kaito prompted with clear expectation.

Shinichi smirked and stole a brief kiss, then pulled away, quickly snatching up his sweater and dragging it over his head and into place. "Tonight we go get dinner. I'm starving," he said, heading for the bathroom.

Kaito laughed. "Okay. Well played." He was about to say something more but stopped when Shinichi poked his head back around the corner and added, "And unless you say something cheesy about 'dessert' right now, we'll be breaking in that bed when we get back."

Kaito's smile broke into a grin as Shinichi disappeared again. "Dammit I love that man."

.

"I can see you getting ideas," Shinichi said, glancing at the childlike glee in Kaito's wide eyes as the wild light displays flashed across the buildings all around them the next night.

"Come on, can you blame me?" Kaito breathed out in distracted French. Then in Japanese he added, "I mean, France is where KID got his start, you know? And this… This is incredible! I can't wait to start work on my next heist!" He caught sight of the Tour Part-Dieu not far in the distance and Shinichi saw a familiar flash in the magician's eyes as they slid up the great height of the tower to the glowing pyramid at the top. He leaned over, pressed a soft kiss to Kaito's cheek, and whispered, "Go on."

Kaito smiled at him. Then he was suddenly holding a folded bundle that Shinichi recognized as the black glider cape. "Come with me?"

Shinichi's heart sped as he looked to the tower again, his eyes drawn to it without conscious thought. But then a grin broke over his face and he met Kaito's gaze. "Yeah. Let's go."

.

The icy wind at the top of the Tour Part-Dieu was more intense than Shinichi had imagined, but Kaito – or rather KID – didn't seem to notice at all. He was staring out over the glowing city and Shinichi had to admit that seeing the festival from so high above was a stunning experience. Between that and the fact that Kaito had come prepared not only with the KID uniform but also a black suit, midnight blue shirt, black silk hat, and monocle for Shinichi, he was beginning to suspect that this had been Kaito's plan all along.

Shinichi let out a little sigh, smiling as he stepped up to the edge of the roof beside KID. The full moon was high in the sky in front of them, the city a sea of dancing lights below, and they glanced at each other with mirrored grins. Without a word, they leapt into the night wind, and for a moment it was as if they could fly with the pull of the moon alone.

The gliders flared open and Shinichi followed KID as he sailed out over the streets, past the flashing facades of buildings and over glowing parks, shimmering fountains and bright parades, dodging hanging lanterns as they coasted lower, and soaking in the excited calls as people took notice.

"Look, look! That's the Phantom Thief KID!"

"No way! He's back?"

"It's gotta be an actor for the festival."

"I heard something big happened in Japan. Maybe it's really him!"

"Is that Chat Noir with him?"

"No, Chat Noir uses a paraglider!"

Shinichi caught a flash of the amused grin KID threw back at him over his shoulder and rolled his eyes.

He was convinced of Kaito's foreplanning when they finally came to a graceful landing on a small boat tucked between the legs of a stone bridge over Le Rhône, the two of them disappearing as far as anyone on the banks could tell. They were both flushed from the cold and wind and neither could seem to stop smiling. Then Shinichi took off his monocle, grabbed KID by the front of his jacket, and pulled him into a deep kiss that knocked his own hat right off of his head and left them both breathless.

"That was the most amazing thing I've ever done," Shinichi breathed out, keeping close against KID. KID just laughed, drawing gloved fingers through Shinichi's hair. "You know," he added. "You've got a lot of fans here. Even the police here are kind of enamored of you, even if most of them don't admit it."

"Yeah?" KID asked, grinning.

"So I was thinking… We've got a few more days before we fly back to Tokyo. How 'bout a heist?"

Shinichi hadn't thought it possible for Kaito to look any happier at that moment, but, as he so often did, he proved him wrong. KID's arms tightened around him as he stole another kiss, then murmured with that same grin, "My darling Tantei-kun… I thought you'd never ask~!"

…

"Vodka was an unfortunate loss. And Merlot of course."

"Yeah. But nothing is permanent. Jail is just a place."

"Death is, of course, more permanent. For now."

"You want Merlot taken care of?"

"…Heh, just Merlot, Gin?"

"…You want Vodka taken care of?"

"No. Leave them. They're not worth the risk or the resources."

"Fine."

"I want you to go to Yokosuka."

"What's there?"

"Your new partner. Without Pandora, we need to rearrange our priorities. I want Sherry back, and that Kudou Shinichi. Get it done, Gin. However you can. But keep them alive."

"Heh. Sherry… She slips death again, huh?"

"You and your new partner will both have to put personal feelings aside now. This is more important."

"It won't be easy. The detective works closely with the MPD, and he's teamed up with that thief, Kaitou KID."

"…The Kaitou KID is a… related problem. Bring him in if you get the chance. Dead or alive, I don't care, though I doubt you'll be able to kill him. No one's managed it yet, and not for lack of trying."

"I'll see what I can do."

.

The black Porsche rolled down the alley, the sound of the engine echoing a little in the quiet before sunrise. The headlights washed over a dark red Harley-Davidson straight ahead and Gin stepped out of the car, clenching his teeth a little around his cigarette.

"I'm in no mood for your games," he said to the empty alleyway.

"Oh, come on." Vermouth stepped into the light, tapping a cigarette out of her pack. "You're still no fun." She walked up to him, standing uncomfortably close, but Gin stood his ground. "Relax," she said, her hand on his chest. "I just need a light." Her fingers slipped under his coat and Gin grabbed her wrist in warning, but when she pulled back she was only holding his lighter. She shook off Gin's hold and lit her cigarette, taking in a long draw.

"What are you doing here, Vermouth?"

"Oh? You didn't know? I'm your new partner." She took a step back and tossed the lighter to him, and he caught it with a scowl. "Let's do our best together, okay?" She turned away and swung a leg over her bike. It roared to life and she revved the engine.

"Where do you think you're going?" Gin demanded.

"We're going back to my place," she answered with a wink. She took a long pull from her cigarette and tossed it away. "Follow me."

Vermouth pushed her helmet down over her head and sped off around a corner without waiting for Gin to get back in his car, but she saw his headlights in her mirrors before she got very far away.

Sorry, Silver Bullet, she thought as she led Gin through the streets toward her hotel. I did my best, but your only option now is to surrender Sherry and come with us. I can guarantee your life… but not your heart. She glanced in her mirror again. …It's only a matter of time.

.

Author Note:

What's that? It was all wrapped up and then I went and put in a shifty, threatening scene with Gin and Vermouth that unraveled the whole thing? It's almost like there's gonna be a… yeah I wrote a freaking sequel. Oops. lol Well, I guess it's more accurate to say I am in the process of writing the sequel. It's called Gravity, and it's far from finished, but I hope you'll indulge me and pay it a visit once it's done.

In the meantime, I'll be posting some bonus chapters for Fall into Flying based on some of the comments I've received throughout the posting (and beta-ing) of this story, as well as some scenes that I had written but cut for pacing or length reasons. I hope you all enjoy :)

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If you felt like there were a lot of references to events and landmarks in France in this chapter that you'd like to know more about, I've included links to ICPO, the Festival of Lights, the Tour Part-Dieu, and the Pont Wilson (the referenced bridge over Le Rhône) at the end of this chapter on AO3.

Specifically concerning the 2015 Festival of Lights (where the last scene technically falls in the timeline), this festival was actually cancelled owing to the state of emergency and out of respect for the victims of the Paris attacks in November of 2015. I wrote this scene around July of 2015 and decided not to change it after hearing about the cancellation later. The purpose of the scene was to provide a sense of revival and hope. It seems appropriate.

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If you don't want to wait for Gravity and you need more longer, plotty kaishin fics in your life, I'd like to personally recommend a few:

Midnight White by Alaena F. Dragonstar was the first kaishin fic I ever read and it totally made this pairing my OTP. It's got a supernatural element to it and the whole thing is just awesome so check it out.

Also amazing and one of my absolute favorites is Countdown to Forever by V. Shaylr. I've read this one at least three times just cause I like it so much. Seriously.

Deal by joisbishmyoga has been around for a while, but I only just read it recently. It is a fantastic piece of writing. It's well thought out, the language is beautiful, and it is the truest to Japanese culture of any fanfic I have ever read (not including any of joisbishmyoga's other amazing works, of course). (Note that joisbishmyoga is on ff-net, but Deal is not. I believe (unless I am mistaken) that that one is only posted on her AO3 account.)

And, if you happen to also like Gundam Wing, solomonara over on AO3 has written a lovely DCMK/GW crossover :) It's called My Future in Your Hands and it will blow your mind. You should read it. Twice.

(All recommendations made with the permission of the authors. Happy reading, everyone!)